That's the Spirit!
by ImpracticalDemon
Summary: Lucy's been researching Halloween for a new story. Natsu's annoyed by how people keep telling him that he *likes* Lucy (and vice versa). Gray is being especially irritating, but that's nothing new. Still, maybe a first date isn't a bad idea.
1. Part 1

**Note:** Written for **Naluween 2018** , Day 4 Prompt **Cemetery**

* * *

 **That's the Spirit, Part I**

"The thing about Halloween," said Lucy, interrupting a spirited exchange between Natsu and Gray on the merits of candy versus chocolate, "is that it's about weakened doors between this life and the next, or the earthly realm and the spiritual, or the human world and the faerie."

"Uh..."

"...If you say so."

"At any rate, that's part of the... the _background_ to Halloween. And I'd like to use it in a story." Lucy wasn't really seeing the puzzled—and rather nervous—faces in front of her. Not that the guys were worried about ghosts and weird creatures; it was Lucy who made them wary. Sometimes she took her story research too much to heart, and then got upset when others found her occasional pronouncements less than enthralling.

"I'm just going to get Levy, okay Lucy?" Gray hurried off to snag the one person he knew would be able and willing to follow his friend's train of thought—and probably enjoy the discussion.

Natsu was relieved that Gray was calling in a specialist, but he wished he'd thought of it first. Rapidly reviewing Lucy's words, he sorted out the gist of it and decided to show initiative.

"A new story sounds great, Lucy! I even have an idea for more research." Erza had told him that since he obviously liked Lucy—which he did, although Erza had put an odd emphasis on the word 'like'—he should try showing more enthusiasm for her interests, and not just tune out everything unrelated to food and fighting. Not that he did.

Lucy had been staring after Gray, but his offer of an idea got her full attention. The evident surprise on her face told him that she shared Erza's belief that he didn't pay much attention to her ramblings—er, personal interests. That wasn't fair, but he pressed on anyway.

"Okay, so Halloween is a night for spooky stuff, right? And the idea is that wherever _those_ things are—ghosts, or whatever—they find it much easier to get to where _we_ live on Halloween for some reason?"

Lucy had harboured the expectation that he'd suggest looking for 'ghost doors', or something like that. She was very _fond_ of Natsu—they were best friends, right?—but even she sometimes forgot how smart he was under all that charging around. Apparently, she waited too long to comment, because Natsu rolled his eyes at her.

"Look, I understood the bit about doors, okay? After I thought about it for a moment. I mean, I _am_ a mage and all."

"Sorry, sorry—I guess I assumed you weren't listening."

Natsu cleared his throat, avoiding the whole _paying attention_ thing. "So, my idea. I figure that if Halloween is the right _time_ , then we should go to the right _place_ , and see some ghosts and ghoulies for ourselves! It would be pretty cool if we saw something creepy, right?"

"Uh... no? What's the right place, anyway?"

"A graaaveyarrrrd." Natsu's voice was suddenly deeper and either spookier (his thought), or sexier (Lucy's opinion, hastily squashed).

"...Why?"

"To help add realism to your story! Come on, it'll be like, like—"

"Field research."

Both Natsu and Lucy turned quickly toward the speaker, although their respective expressions varied considerably. Lucy looked suspicious, while Natsu looked pleased. For her part, Levy's brown eyes were twinkling, and she seemed to be suppressing a giggle. Levy had Views about how Lucy and Natsu felt about each other, and Lucy was fighting a losing battle and she knew it.

"Yeah! Field research, exactly! Thanks, Levy." Natsu grinned cheerfully, crossing his arms over his chest. Lucy sighed internally, as unwillingly charmed as ever by the sheer force of Natsu's smile. Not that he meant it just for her, of course.

"Where's Gray? Oh, talking to Gajeel." Lucy took rather snide satisfaction in the way the smaller woman's head immediately turned. Natsu, on the other hand, was mentally congratulating Gray for intercepting an obstacle that might have prevented Levy from being there to support his plan.

"So, um, yeah." Levy quickly forced her eyes back to Lucy. "I mean, book-learning isn't everything, right?"

"Yeah!" crowed Natsu, feeling more and more sold on his idea by the moment.

"Are you _feeling_ well?" Lucy demanded of her friend. "Since when did you prefer _anything_ to a good book?!"

"Oh... well..." Levy was blushing slightly.

"Even I know the answer to that one, Lucy," crowed Natsu. "I mean, _everyone_ knows Levy has a thing for old rust-bucket over there!" Suddenly finding himself the target of two very unhappy glares, he rushed to his feet. "Right, okay, so I'll make arrangements for Halloween, Lucy—you can count on me. To, um, help you with your research. For your story. I'm sure there's a good, you know, cemetery around."

"Dig yourself a grave while you're at it," muttered Lucy, still deeply irritated at Natsu for thinking she could possibly _not_ know what was distracting Levy these days.

"I'll make you a shovel," commented Levy, red to her ears.

Natsu made a quick exit, grabbing Gray on his way out, and trying to shove Gajeel in Levy's direction as a distraction. Gray protested Natsu's grip, but went with the flow. Even as the doors closed behind him, Natsu heard Gajeel call:

"Oi, Lava Brain! Leave me outta your romantic issues next time! And that goes for you, too, Ice Cube—leave me outta _his_ problems, got it?!"

Natsu started to turn back, but Gray already had a grip on him, although he didn't look too pleased at Gajeel's comment either. Eventually, they were trudging in silence along the canal, in no particular direction except that this one happened to lead to Lucy's place.

"I think you should just ask her out," Gray said at last, his eyes firmly on the flagstones under their feet.

"What are you talking about? To the cemetery? Once I find one, that is."

Gray stopped abruptly, expression baffled. "You're going to take Lucy to a cemetery for your first date? Seriously? I think all that fire in your head is depriving your brain of oxygen or something."

"What the hell does that mean?!" Natsu tossed a punch at Gray's shoulder, which was now bare. Gray ducked away without looking up. "And keep your shirt on, Popsicle Princess!"

To Natsu's dismay, Gray refused to respond in kind, although he did stomp back to pick up his discarded shirt. There was something weird about his expression that Natsu couldn't place.

"Lucy likes you. You know? _Like_ -like? Girlfriend-boyfriend like?" Gray crossed his arms tightly over his chest, frowning. "And if you don't want to go out with her, that's fine, but you could at least tell her that. Maybe somebody else could ask her out instead."

"Nobody's gonna ask Lucy out but me," Natsu said flatly, his voice certain, although the confusion on his face didn't match.

"Fine. But get on with it, okay? 'Cause I'm with Gajeel on this one. Leave me out of it until you're done deciding."

Natsu watched open-mouthed as Gray tugged on his shirt, shoved his hands in his pockets, and walked off. What was with him? Well, _fine_ then! It's not like he cared about Gray's opinion anyway! And Gajeel insulted him twice a day at least, so nothing new _there_.

But something kept him rooted to the spot, staring out at the canal and mulling things over. He still didn't think there was a need to make so much _fuss_ over it, but now that he turned his mind to it... He rubbed at his jaw, as various scenes played across his memory. Maybe they were right. Not that they could really understand how he felt about Lucy. But maybe _Lucy_ wanted to know. She liked things in words, almost as much as Levy did.

Maybe... maybe he _should_ ask Lucy out before somebody else did it accidentally and he was forced to hurt them. And what was so bad about a first date in a graveyard at Halloween, anyway? He'd be showing an interest in her new story, and it was sure to be less boring than other people's first dates (whatever _they_ were). Yeah.

Happy flew up just in time to see his friend smack a fiery fist into a glowing palm. Natsu was grinning like a madman:

"Happy! I'm all fired up! Now we just need a good cemetery!"

[END]

* * *

 **A/Note:** First date coming up!


	2. Part 2

**A/Note:** This was supposed to be published on Halloween day, not just a tiny bit too far into November 1. I hope you will enjoy it nonetheless, especially since it's more than twice the length I original planned!

* * *

 **That's the Spirit—Part II**

* * *

It had taken longer to find a suitable graveyard than Natsu had expected. He'd been looking for something old and at least a little spooky, and the modern, neatly-trimmed local cemetery hadn't had the right feel to it. He'd also wanted to keep their destination a surprise from Lucy, who'd been strangely reluctant to abandon the guild's big Halloween party in favour of a 'short' trip out of town with Natsu to who-knew-where.

In desperation, Natsu had been forced to practically kidnap Lucy from her apartment, and he'd almost gotten Lucy-kicked when he'd pointed out that the stiletto-heeled boots she was wearing with her witch's costume wouldn't be very practical to hike around in. Still, Lucy was Lucy, which meant that in the end she'd given in, grabbed slightly more practical boots, and stomped out of the apartment after him.

"Are we almost there yet?"

"Yeah, just about! This'll be awesome, Lucy, you'll see. _Way_ better than going to some dumb party."

"I helped organize that dumb party."

"Yeah? Cool. But don't worry, I'll bet you'll like this better anyway—I researched it and everything!"

Lucy frowned at that and stopped walking. "Natsu?"

"Yeah?"

"I ditched my own party—well guild party."

"Yeah?"

"And Mirajane and Erza—I hope you understand this—are going to be mad at me."

"Right, right—er, could we keep moving? I want you to get the full effect, and there's supposed to be rain later on."

Lucy drew a deep breath, but she started walking again, though slowly.

"You said it was a short trip, but we had to take a train, walk a couple of miles, cut through a small—and points to you, very spooky—village, and now we're back on a dirt path and I'm not sure the trees have been cut back in years."

"I know right?! I told you, I did some major research to find a place this perfect!"

"It's cold, dark, and foggy. That village back there was definitely odd, and the people in the bar looked like they'd rather rob our corpses than help us out of trouble. Honestly, why do I always agree to these plans of yours?!"

Natsu reached out and grabbed her hand, smiling widely. Then he remembered what he was supposed to do and found himself swallowing nervously. He still didn't quite believe that things needed to change between them, but this was for Lucy. Among other things, she _did_ always agree to plans—eventually. A little _pro forma_ complaining was only to be expected.

"Um, Lucy?"

"Yes, Natsu?"

"Your writing's really important to you, right?"

"Yes?" She was looking at him curiously, but the wariness from before was there as well.

"And you kind of like the romance parts in the books you an' Levy read, right?"

"Ye—well, I guess so? Natsu what on _earth_ —"

"So I thought, what better place?"

With a wide gesture of his free hand, Natsu indicated the worn stone wall ahead of them. The gate was black wrought-iron with rusty patches, and the lettering above made the nature of their destination especially clear. Happy hadn't been too sure about the stone skulls on the gateposts, but Natsu had been sold.

"You didn't. No, what am I saying? Of course you did." Lucy stood staring up at the words over the gate. Her hand tightened on Natsu's, which he decided to take as a good sign, despite other, less promising signs. No point in being pessimistic.

"Yep, this is a first-class, totally authentic, ancient-graves-only cemetery! Took some doing, but it's all yours to explore and enjoy—well, not enjoy, but just think of the ambience! With any luck, we'll get to see all sorts of amazing stuff—and don't worry, I'll protect you if things get too spooky."

"Natsu, 'Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here' is _not_ a typical slogan for a cemetery!"

"Seemed kinda odd to me too, but extra-weird isn't bad if you're looking for ghosts and ghoulies."

"And why are we here?"

Natsu's dark gray-green eyes became serious. He took Lucy's other hand, and although he suddenly understood why some guys might find this intimidating, he also discovered that it was something he wanted to do.

"Lucy…" Uncharacteristically, he had to moisten his lips before continuing. "Um. Right. Would-you-go-on-a-date-with-me?"

"Would I wha—Natsu!" Lucy's voice squeaked in surprise. "You're asking me out?!"

"Yes! Oh man, you understood!" Natsu was relieved. He hadn't been absolutely certain how this part would go. He'd worried that Erza had been wrong (possible), or that Gray's brain cells had malfunctioned (very possible), or that Gajeel—iron-headed punk—had been mocking him (probable). But as long as Lucy knew what he was talking about, she wasn't totally unaware of the whole girlfriend issue.

Lucy was staring at him; apparently, he needed to say something else. "So will you go out with me?"

"I…" Lucy looked freaked out. "I didn't think you'd ever ask."

"Oh, right, sure—totally understandable. I was biding my time."

"Biding your time? Wait, does that mean—were you reading my book again?!"

"What—why do you ask?"

"Biding your time? Seriously?"

"Yes, I was biding my time—if your _Count Ugolino_ can bide his time, then I—"

"So you _were_ reading my book!"

"Lucy, can we focus on the real question here?" Natsu assumed a dignified expression.

"That's just avoiding—no, wait, okay. Are you _sure_ you're serious?"

It occurred to Natsu that Lucy looked a little teary-eyed. His nose told him that she was happy-excited, though. Now that he was looking for it, he had to admit that his friends had been right. He decided to just say what he felt.

"I realized that I didn't want anybody else asking you out. And also, you're a really great friend, an awesome mage, and I always feel best when we're together."

"You…" Unaccountably, Lucy burst into tears and hit feebly at his chest. "You _dummy_ … saying stuff like that, and never understanding…"

"Was that 'dummy' meant in a good way?" But Natsu found himself holding her tightly against his chest, and stroking her pretty blonde hair. It was confusing, but it felt good.

"Natsu?"

"Yes?"

"Why are you asking me out in a cemetery?" Her voice was muffled, but he could make out the words without difficulty.

"Right! Well, assuming that you're saying yes to going out with me—"

"Yes."

"—Then this is our first date! A place I picked just for you. And me. For us, I mean." He felt warmed by the new, still unexplored meaning of 'us'.

"You wanted to go to a cemetery on Halloween for our first date. To—I think—to help me research All Hallows Eve and so on?"

"Exactly. And also because I'm kind of curious about seeing ghosts or whatever. So—shall we go in?"

Lucy leaned back far enough to peer into his face. She looked cute, even with the tear streaks. Of course, Lucy always looked cute; he'd known that for ages.

"You didn't pick a cemetery because I might get scared and jump into your arms or something?"

Natsu blinked. "No?" Once again, he tried to puzzle out the question. This going out thing was complicated. His mind somehow supplied the right answer—probably from listening to one of the girls or guys back at the guild. "But you can, if you want. Jump into my arms. You're more likely to beat on things, though, aren't you? But anyway, let's go!"

Keeping Lucy's hand firmly in his, Natsu opened the gate and forged ahead with his plan. After they'd gone about thirty feet, he stopped and gestured proudly, as he had earlier.

"Come on, is this great or what?"

Lucy seemed to still be struggling with her emotions, but she gripped her underlip in her teeth and looked around. To Natsu's delight, she broke into a genuine grin just a few moments later.

"Oh wow! Natsu—this is amazing! Talk about authentically creepy!"

Natsu beamed at her. "You're the _best_ , Lucy. I knew you'd see the advantages."

"Okay, but—a _cemetery_ , really? Ooooh, look at that small mausoleum over there! That angel hovering over the top looks deadly—not comforting at all, is it?"

"That's the resting place of Sir Nicholas Bottom. He used to be a big deal around here four hundred years ago. Probably died of embarrassment over all the dumb name jokes."

"You looked that up? Not the last part, obviously."

"Yeah, of course! That's why I'm surprised those guys back at the bar were so unfriendly. Last time—couple of days ago—they were fine."

A fine, misting rain started to drizzle down, and Lucy shivered. She pulled her witch's cloak more tightly about her, then edged closer to Natsu.

"Oh hey, yeah! Since this is a date, I can totally keep you warm, right? No calling me a pervert, or anything, right? I've got this!" Pleased to show off a new skill, Natsu gathered magical energy and created—

"A flaming umbrella?"

"Stylish _and_ practical!" With a look that could have been shyness, Natsu let go of Lucy's hand in order to put his arm around her and pull her closer. He guided their steps toward the decrepit, moss-ridden marble of Sir Nicholas' tomb.

Lucy murmured her appreciation, and then they started making their slow way around the rest of the cemetery. The umbrella was warm and bright overhead.

"You know, Lucy—"

"You know, Natsu—"

"We're not going to see anything at this rate," finished Natsu with a chuckle.

Lucy nodded. "Exactly. We've got drizzling rain, a suitable fog, old weathered gravestones… and a glowing umbrella."

Natsu turned off the umbrella—as it were—and suggested finding a quiet place to wait for whatever was going to happen.

Lucy indicated that a heavily decorated gravestone (with full pediment and two cherubs), raised in honour of the tragic Lady Ophelia appealed to her and would be comfortable to lean against. "Though it's very sad—didn't you say she drowned?" Lucy found herself walking as close to Natsu as possible—just to keep warm, of course. And he was very warm, after all.

"I guess. Those cherubs are kinda un-atmospheric if you ask me." Lucy laughed at the disdain in Natsu's voice.

Was it possible to snuggle against a marble pediment adorned with trailing seaweed and smarmy cherubs? Yes it was. Lucy still looked rather dazed, though. Natsu wavered between triumph and not knowing what to do next. You couldn't order hot chocolate in a graveyard. Just as he reached this thought, the sound of conversation came to his ears. Lucy felt him straighten, and glanced up inquiringly.

"People coming."

Lucy nodded. She took Natsu's incredible hearing pretty much for granted now. Natsu frowned.

"They're saying they'll need to get the stuff from the prince's lady tonight. And maybe even open up 'tailor nick'."

Lucy's eyes widened. "They're coming _here_?" Natsu nodded, eyes narrowed.

"What a drag. They'll ruin our perfectly good ghost-hunt!"

"Well you know…" Lucy suddenly drew out a key. "Halloween's a night for pranks, after all."

"I could just—"

"No, Natsu. But how about lighting up a few things—without burning everything down, I mean!"

The gate opened with a wild screech of rusty iron, and then two werewolves, one zombie, and two vampires, stalked, lurched, and drifted, respectively, into the graveyard. Their costumes were surprisingly authentic; the fabric even smelled of must, and earth, and traces of blood, according to Natsu's nose. He felt Lucy tense.

"They can't be real, they just can't be," she muttered. Natsu took the opportunity to pull her closer, and wondered if she was considering leaping into his arms. Unlikely, but you never knew. He allowed fire to limn one hand, careful not to scorch Lucy, who had complained of such things in the past.

The next thing he knew—which was crazy—a tendril of icy cold flicked against his neck, and a chilly voice hissed: "Ssstay out of thisss, draggon chiiild."

Naturally, Natsu knew who to blame. He shoved Lucy away—gently—and spun around, fire burning on both fists. "Gray, you bastard—"

"It's not Gray," squeaked Lucy, who was staggering to her feet nearby. "And I think the atmosphere's gotten very, uh, atmospheric."

She had a point. The irritated, green-eyed spirit looming over Natsu did not have any of Gray's familiar touches. It—possibly she—was mostly translucent, but dark, wet-looking seaweed seemed to crawl over its body. Meanwhile, the werewolves, zombie, and vampires were closing the distance with ridiculous speed.

"You're a _zombie_ ," he heard Lucy yell. "You _can't_ be moving that fast!"

"Actually, he's a ghoul, pretty girl. They move quite quickly." A cold hand caressed Lucy's neck, and she yelped.

"And vampires don't exist!" The hand was slapped away with force.

"She's got you there, Count." The guy-who-definitely-couldn't-be-a-werewolf was lounging near Lucy's feet, leering at her.

"Ha. Ha." The nonexistent vampire bowed gracefully in mid-air. "Don't be fooled, my dear. I'm not a count, I'm a marquis. You know how it is—the aristocracy always did get the best tombs. You smell lovely, by the way."

The next instant, the marquis found himself engulfed in flames and rocketing up into the air.

"Don't you _dare_ touch Lucy! Or smell her, either!" The leering werewolf was sent rolling across the tangled grass into a gravestone, its shaggy hair ablaze.

At the same moment, Loke the Lion stepped out of nowhere to Lucy's side. He seemed as calm as ever, but Natsu had the impression that his fur was suddenly standing on end.

"Interesting place for a date, Natsu."

"Stuff it, Loke."

"No, I mean it. You must have found the only graveyard in the country being contested by"—he paused to count—"at least one of the greater Fae, two vampires, a ghoul, and two lesser Fae. Well done."

Natsu eyed him warily. "Thanks. Now I'm gonna take them out. Feel free to help, just don't get in my way."

"Natsu, they're snickering." Lucy had another key out, and looked nervous, but Natsu could tell that part of her _was_ genuinely impressed. "Let's try talking first, okay?"

"No way, isn't there some rule about not talking to creatures of the night or something?"

Loke shot Natsu a surprised look. "You actually know something about faerie creatures? And the undead? Though I've heard speculation that vampires are actually undead Fae."

The whispering and giggling among the creatures surrounding them grew in intensity. Except that the giant ghost-seaweed lady was now looming over all of them, and there were definitely fangs showing over her lips.

"Leo the Lion. Hmmm. I did not know that you were aware of usss."

"It pays to be informed, Lady." Loke bowed carefully, not meeting the Fae's eyes. Natsu figured that if anyone here were a 'greater' something, it was the seaweed not-quite-a-ghost.

"I sssugessst that you young onesss leave."

"An interesting decision, Lady," said the marquis. "But surely unwise? We don't want any future interlopers in our, ah, private interests? Besides, the young lady is most—shall we say—enchanting?"

Natsu was fed up. He sent another blast of fire at the vampire—or whatever it was—just because it was the most annoying, and took Lucy's hand.

"Just to be clear," he said, in the ominous growl that he rarely used, " _you_ are interrupting _our_ private interests. And if you lay another hand on Lucy, then I don't care what you are, you're going down."

"He's actually more powerful than he appears," Loke put in helpfully, although he was still giving a good impression of a simultaneously wary and angry cat to Natsu's senses.

"Perhapsss it isss sssso," said the Lady. She didn't look intimidated in the slightest, but she wasn't attacking either.

"Oh, for goodness' sake"—Lucy was interrupted by another whisper of edged laughter—"okay, for heavens sake—no—OH FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! Shut up, all of you! This is my FIRST. DATE. EVER. So quit it!"

"I'm beginning to see why it's her first date, mind you," commented the heretofore silent vampire.

Natsu immediately realized that there was now somebody more likely to get the fighting started than he was, and that thought made him clamp down on his temper and tighten his hold on Lucy.

"I sssugessst you find a different sssemetery," murmured the Lady in Natsu's ear, quietly enough that even he barely heard her. This time, the chill, definitely ghostlike sensation traveled the length of his body, and he had to work to hold onto his flames. He glanced at Loke, who gave him the tiniest of shrugs. Loke would stay with Lucy either way, but he didn't like this fight.

Natsu gave the assembled Fae, ghost-vampires, and ghoulies a bright grin that didn't hide any teeth. He then dropped an unmistakable kiss on Lucy's cheek, which distracted Lucy from deciding how she was going to destroy Silent Vampire and Marquis Vampire.

"Lucy, I thought this place was perfect—and it _was_ —but the locals are getting to me. Let's find ourselves a more"—he side-eyed the vampires—"uninfested graveyard, yeah?"

Lucy now appeared to be torn between curiosity and amusement, but she nodded her agreement, and twined her fingers more tightly in his. It was a really… nice… feeling. Not quite like the way they'd held hands in the past.

"The themetery about two mileth northwetht hath a nithe ambianthe," said the ghoul, rather unexpectedly.

"Thanks, bro," Natsu replied. "Good luck tonight. Happy All Hallows Eve, eh?" He started for the gate, his path taking him straight through the still-smoking werewolf-fae. It didn't move. He allowed the flame on his free hand to burn hotter and brighter. It rose to its full height, and got… bigger.

"Virgo!"

"Yes, princess?"

Natsu glanced at Lucy. He had no idea what she was thinking, which was weird, but he knew enough to let her do this her way.

"This one's all yours. Just get him out of my way."

"Yes, princess. Since Loke- _sama_ is here, there will be no difficulty. However—"

Natsu felt the onrushing cold, and instinctively threw his arms around Lucy. Something like a contained gale whipped by them with inches to spare, and then he couldn't smell the obnoxious were-creature any more.

Virgo was waist-deep in the ground, but unconcerned. "As I was saying, princess, I believe he has annoyed the Lady. Also, Natsu- _san_ , you are lying in a most undignified way on Lucy- _hime_. Do you want to be punished?"

Natsu was abruptly more aware of how he'd landed than in the past, and he hurried to his feet. "No thanks, Virgo, I'm fine." He helped Lucy up, and realized that she was blushing. It was time to go.

"Don't turn back, don't say thank you—again—just leave." That was Loke.

"Yeah, that's what I'm doing—right, Lucy?"

"Um, yes, absolutely. But what do you mean—"

"Rumour, and a certain amount of purely vicarious experience, says that if you thank one of the faerie kind then they take it as an acknowledgment of a debt and, well, they tend to be persistent about claiming debts."

They were almost at the gate. Whether despite, or forgetful of, Loke's advice, Natsu glanced back. The graveyard was dancing with eerie lights, and dark shapes moved within. _I definitely picked the right graveyard._ Then his eyes somehow met those of the one called the Lady, and for a moment he couldn't move.

 _You are fortunate that I have a soft spot for young lovers_ , whispered a cold voice inside his head. The extravagant sibilance was gone. _Do not come back. And by the way—Igneel Firelord is closer than you think, but you will find him only when you need him most. Goodbye, dragon-child._

* * *

They ended up back at Lucy's place, minus spooky Fae and celestial spirits. For the first time in their entire relationship, Natsu hesitated at the door.

"Natsu?" Lucy sounded a little tired, but she was smiling at him. "I'll make us tea, okay? And snacks?"

A few minutes later, they were seated together on the couch, tea and snacks untasted. Natsu was annoyed to find that he'd lost his easy comfort with Lucy. Was it really worth it?

"Um, are you okay?"

"Oh, yeah—you? Are you disappointed that our first date was a bit, you know, bizarre?"

Lucy's lips twitched, and then she was grinning madly.

"I think I'd be disappointed if it wasn't. Did you really mean it—about going out together?"

"Yeah, of course." Instinctively, Natsu reached out to touch her cheek. He hadn't been sure, a moment before, but now that they were more relaxed, it seemed completely right—inevitable, even. He leaned forward to rest his forehead against Lucy's, but that still didn't feel close enough, so he pulled her into his lap. Her breath caught, but she only tensed for an instant before snuggling against him as if they'd been doing this forever. Maybe they had, in their own way.

"Natsu…"

"Just tell me if I make mistakes, okay? I'm kind of new at this."

"Me too."

She sat back and looked up at him, and his hands shifted to gently cup her cheeks. Had he ever seen Lucy blush like this? He wasn't sure. It hadn't been the kind of thing he'd analyzed, before. Tracing her jaw made him almost uncomfortably warm, which shouldn't really be possible, but shortly afterward he found one hand caressing the back of her head, and his mouth on hers. She was amazingly sweet to his senses, and now his fingers were tangling in her hair, and her lips were parting to murmur something incoherent and somehow arousing.

"…Natsu…" It wasn't a request to stop, he could tell, but he did anyway.

"Yes?"

"Thank you." Her lips trailed up his cheek, and he felt her teeth nip his ear. For a moment he couldn't hear anything over the rush of the blood in his veins and the pounding of his heart. He only caught the tail-end of what she said next. "—was a wonderful cemetery. Lots of great touches of authenticity."

For some reason, Natsu couldn't deal with the way her breath blew gently across his ear as she spoke; his senses were reeling. He pulled back from her, but only to kiss her almost savagely on the lips, and to explore her mouth with his tongue. Time passed, and each increasingly breathy moan from Lucy drove him closer to some longed-for conclusion.

"Lucy… sorry… I didn't—I swear I didn't realize!" He pushed himself upright in something like shock when he realized that she was pinned under him on the couch, disheveled and heavy-lidded. He could see the round swell of her breasts even more than usual, and the way they jutted up against the stretchy fabric of her rumpled black shirt was actually making him sweat. Despite how hot he felt, and the aching, too-tight feeling between his legs, he rolled onto his knees on the floor, and looked down at her in concern.

"Natsu?" Lucy lifted her head and used one hand to pull his lips back to hers. "This is good. Don't worry, I know you won't hurt me, or rush things."

Her best friend—her boyfriend? the word still felt strange to Natsu—thought that he might have a tough time not rushing things, but he'd managed tough things before.

"Yeah, I know. I mean, no, I won't rush things. But you know… I really didn't understand what it felt like, and I'm kinda crazy about you, so you've got to smack me or something if I ever—"

"You know me—I will. Stop overthinking things." Lucy let her head fall back with a laugh. "I can't believe I just said that!"

"Neither can I."

"Too bad the ghosts and ghoulies chased us out of our perfect cemetery." She was pressing kisses against his chest now—when had he lost his shirt? Not long after, he dragged her down onto the carpet with him, and went back to kissing her with unreserved passion, on the lips, and ears, and neck, and shoulders. Her hands roamed the curves and planes of his torso, and his low hum of longing sounded loud in his own ears.

"The gh-ghosts and ghoulies weren't so b-bad. B-but maybe next year you can find us somewhere a little quieter."

"Mmm? Oh, yeah, I will. Definitely."

It was an excellent first date, and a very happy Halloween.

* * *

[END]

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 **A/Note:** I don't know where these stories come from, or why they always end up too long, but I'm glad to have something new and fun out there for the Fairy Tail fandom! Your comments and reviews are always greatly appreciated, whether on tumblr, FFN, or AO3. And yes, I do read tags :)


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